


i exist wherever you are

by iiccarus



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Angst, Angst and Humor, F/F, Gen, Minor Chou Tzuyu/Son Chaeyoung, Pining, Possibly Unrequited Love, Science Fiction, Some Humor, Supernatural Elements, Unrequited Love, light fluff, pls jihyo is TIREDT
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2019-10-05 05:50:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17319182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iiccarus/pseuds/iiccarus
Summary: Jihyo is sure she’s destined to be nothing more than a broke, stressed out college student, but upon meeting Sana, a girl whose tongue flicked with more knowledge of the past than a history book could ever muster and more familiarity with the future than any fortune teller could ever wish for, she’s sure she’s destined for something greater than her world can contain.OrJihyo, Jeongyeon, Dahyun and Chaeyoung have spent their entire youth barely surviving and Sana is their first breath of a simple life.





	1. peace treaty?

**Author's Note:**

> Jihyo raises her glass, clinking it with Jeongyeon's glass. 
> 
> "Here's to the girls who slip through the cracks of the universe." 
> 
> Jeongyeon raised her eyebrows, but they quickly drop. "Fuck it, cheers."

 

Jihyo collapsed into the library chair, her eyes fought against the heavy tug of weariness as she flipped through the pages of her textbook.

 

The words of her uptight professor floated through her mind:

 

_“Final at the end of this week, two parts. No redos. Good luck.”_

  

She groaned into her hands as her mind raced through months worth of chemistry, formulas and compounds began to build themselves in her mindscape before a cold feeling wrapped around her face.

 

“Guess who.” a voice teased. 

 

“Tall asshole.” Jihyo replied as she swatted at the hands.

 

“Guessed right asshole.” she replied, her hands slid off her eyes and Jihyo’s view was filled with her silver haired friend sliding into the seat opposite of her.

 

“Whatca studyin Thomas?” Jeongyeon asked with an innocent smile but a gleam of mischief in her eyes.

  

Jihyo sighed in response before speaking. “Chem, boring ass chem.”

  

“That’s what you get for majoring in STEM.” Jeongyeon joked as she peered into Jihyo’s textbook.

 

“You’re right, I should’ve majored in history like you, except I don’t want to teach a bunch of gross kids about how everyone fucked up in world war two” Jihyo replied with an exaggerated nod.

 

The older woman’s eyes narrowed at her friend’s snarky reply, she scoffed as she leaned further back in her chair. “Choke on your jealousy you little-”

 

Her eyes seemed to lock with the clock behind her, Jihyo saw the miniature gears begin to grind against each other. Her smile dropped as she flung herself forwards, she gripped the edges of the table, which seemed to be the only thing that kept her from flying into Jihyo.

 

“Holy fuck I’m gonna be late!” she shouted, she yanked at her bag and fled out of the library, with plenty of eyes following her disheveled sprint out of the building.

 

She turned away from the eyes that had turned their focus to her, as the textbooks had begun to weigh heavy on her soul.

 

Hours into studying Jihyo started to see chemical formulas and equations more than colors, intricate chemical models of various metals and gases began to drift through her vision as if they were eye floaters. But a woman eventually made her way through the science and stood before her with a smile.

 

“Hey, is this seat open?” she asked, her smile was kind and warm while her voice was high pitched.

 

Jihyo seemed to stumble over her words, the woman’s beauty seemed ethereal, but her face was blurred by chemical formulas and complex equations that made up the basis of their universe.

 

“Yeah- Sure go ahead.” she mumbled quickly before turning back to her textbook.

 

A quiet thanks floated from the woman’s mouth before she sat down.

 

Jihyo yawned before pulling away from her textbook, she threw a pencil in and closed it shut. A stinging cramp managed to linger its way through her flesh and lodged itself deep within her back muscles, it ached as she pulled herself from the hard wooden seat.

 

Her hands kneaded into the burning flesh as she her vision lingered on the beauty before her.

 

“Whatca studying?” the woman asked as she looked up from her phone and into Jihyo’s eyes.

 

“Chem.” Jihyo replied with a louder yawn, a flood of red filled her cheeks as the woman chuckled quietly.

 

The woman pulled air through her teeth. “I was hoping I could help you, but I’m just a history buff.”

 

Jihyo laughed quietly, “It seems like everyone here is.”

 

“But I wouldn’t blame them, history seems more interesting than chem I’ll tell you that.” she added on quickly.

 

“I won’t disagree with you there.” the woman replied with a grin.

 

The conversation flowed smoothly between the two, it didn’t slam into Jihyo’s inherent social awkwardness and eventually two paper boats had been set into the sea, one named Jihyo and the other named Sana.

 

But Sana spoke oddly, her boat jerked side to side as words foreign to Jihyo set sail in her sentences. Words that didn’t seem to belong to the present or the past, Jihyo wasn’t a history buff but words like ‘The peace treaty of Seoul and Pyongyang’ hadn’t seemed familiar in the slightest. But she ignored the rickety squeaks coming from Sana’s lingo, and assumed it was because she from Japan and didn’t know much about Korean history.

 

Aside from Sana’s odd word usage, the woman seemed normal in every way. Except for the fact that her eyes glowed with curiosity when Jihyo spoke of current events, the uprising at Y9 entertainment, the current plague epidemic that had hit Busan fairly hard and was beginning to creep its way into Seoul. Her eyes shined with innocent interest but she spoke as if she knew, and once again Jihyo ignored the fairly confident predictions and assumed that Sana dabbled with crystal balls and tarot cards.

 

Jihyo’s eyes lingered to the clock and she gasped in surprise. “Holy shit it’s eleven.”

 

Sana’s eyes widened, echoing the younger woman’s expression. “You should probably get going.”

 

But Jihyo was already packing her textbook and laptop into her backpack before she could finish her sentence. Once done she looked to the Japanese woman with a smile.

 

“It was nice meeting you Sana, I hope I see you again.” Jihyo admitted with the slightest edge of embarrassment slipping into her words.

 

“I’m sure we’ll meet again,” she nearly purred in a low yet friendly tone. “I left my number in your book. Text me whenever.”

 

Jihyo’s face visibly lit up in excitement, “I will. Goodnight.”

 

“Night.”

 

* * *

 

 

She opened her door to the flooding smell of ramen and smoke. She cursed under her breath when she noticed fluffs of silver poking out from beneath a sea of blankets.

 

She approached the older woman and barely flicked her forehead, but as usual Jeongyeon loved to dramatize, she flipped off the couch and landed onto the ground with a hard thump, she cried out, whimpering dramatically as she pouted.

 

“You have no right to be an ass. You were the one that came home late, you almost killed Chae and Dubu,” Jeongyeon yelped. “You almost killed two babies, you’re a whole ass baby killer. Are you happy baby killer?”

 

Jihyo ignored her older friend as she waved at her nostrils, “Why does it smell like shit in here?”

 

“I told you already. Chae got stressed because you were late and then Dubu tried to make ramen to calm her down, but then her dumbass forgot about it and then it caught on fire and then Dubu got stressed about the carbon monoxide levels,” she paused to sigh, “Those shitheads don’t know how to function without you.”

 

“Why were you late anyways?” she asked while patting the ground beside her.

 

Jihyo smirked as she held her hand up, a scrap of paper was tucked tightly between her index finger and middle finger.

 

“Is that toilet paper?” Jeongyeon asked as her eyes narrowed.

 

Jihyo scoffed. “No you hag it’s a number. I got someone’s number!”

 

“Big whoop, Nayeon gave my number to a girl she knew.” said Jeongyeon

 

“She gave your number to her boss… Because you’re her emergency contact you dumbass.”

 

“Doesn’t matter, I still bagged that cat.”

 

Jihyo grimaced in disgust, but crawled onto the floor and rested her head on Jeongyeon’s shoulder.

 

“What were you late for?” she asked.

 

“I had a meeting with my professor,” she explained, “Totally got my ass chewed out, but turns out I’m an academic scholar.”

 

“Chewed out or ate out?” Jihyo asked as she snickered.

 

Jeongyeon recoiled from Jihyo as she groaned loudly. “You sick fuck, she’s like a hundred. I don’t need her dentures getting wedged up in-”

 

Jihyo quickly held her hand up, “ **You’re** the sick fuck. Jesus Christ, how did you even come up with that?”

 

Jeongyeon looked to the younger woman with a content smile. “What can I say, I’m an instrument to my muses.”

 

Jihyo pulled herself from the ground with a disgusted smile. “Get new ones, your's are fucked.”

 

She entered the small hall and knocked on the door at the end, she heard lingering whispers before the door opened.

 

A shorter woman opened the door with slight hesitation, “Hey asshole, thought you were dead.”

 

She heard Dahyun’s voice project from the back of the room. “Damnit, I was just about to score your tv.”

 

Jihyo laughed into Chaeyoung’s hair as she pulled the younger woman into her arms. “Don’t lie shitheads, I know you both were ready to commit the second I didn’t come home.”

 

“Jeongyeon was lying. It smells like smoke in here because Dahyun was smokin pot.” Chaeyoung admitted as she pulled herself from Jihyo’s arms.

 

Jihyo heard a sharp gasp and watched a pillow flew across the room and smack Chaeyoung on the back of her head. “Stop lying!”

 

“Everyone here’s a pothead, I’m pretty sure it’s a requirement in the contract.” Jihyo mumbled before entering the room.

 

A bunk bed was tucked away neatly into the corner, the top bed was littered with drawings, some crumpled, others smooth as silk. Drawings were taped to the upper bunk’s section of the wall, all abstract, and all beautiful. Jihyo felt herself beam with pride as various art awards were nailed to the wall. She lowered her head to the neater bed, where various academic awards were also nailed to the wall and a small cross hung near the lower bunk and the sweet memory of Dahyun handing them all small crosses, telling them they didn't have to use it or even hang it up. But she felt better knowing that they all had one with them. So a small cross was nailed in every room, despite Jeongyeon's fake complaining, she found the small act, cute and comforting. 

 

“So what were you doing?” Chaeyoung asked as Jihyo climbed onto her bed.

 

She yawned lightly before speaking. “Studying.”

 

She smirked before adding on. “And I met someone.”

 

“Hopefully someone who knows how to get rid of this shit smell.” Chaeyoung groaned as she waved at her face.

 

“I doubt it, but she seemed smart…” Jihyo muttered before the memory struck her like a moving train.

 

She leapt off the bunk bed and went stumbling into Jeongyeon’s neat room.

 

“The peace treaty of Seoul and Pyongyang!” she shouted as she swung the door open, causing the older woman to jump in shock.

 

Jeongyeon scoffed, “There’s no such thing... A treaty between the North and the South?”

 

Jihyo’s eyebrows furrowed, “Sana- The girl I met, she mentioned it.”

 

Jeongyeon shrugged, “Maybe she’s a optimist. But no such thing has ever happened.”

 

Jihyo huffed quietly, “She was so… Confusing.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“She talked about things I didn’t know about. Like the treaty, she said she was sure the Y9 uprising would end with Y9 going bankrupt….”

 

Jeongyeon laughed, “Maybe she’s a fortune teller. Ooh! Maybe you met a spirit.”

 

Jihyo scowled, “She’s not a spirit.”

 

The older woman looked back with a look of doubt. “Text her, I don’t even believe she’s real anymore.”

 

Jihyo pulled her phone from her pocket and tapped rapidly.

 

_Hey, it’s Jihyo. Whatca up to?_

 

_Nothing much, just relaxin. Hbu?_

 

Jihyo handed her phone to Jeongyeon. “See. Would a spirit be that nice?”

 

“Just because she didn’t leave you on read doesn’t mean she’s not a spirit. You’re just not used to people replying this fast.” Jeongyeon muttered.

 

Jeongyeon’s fingers began to tap on the screen.

 

_Just curious, whats up with the peace treaty with seoul and pyongyang that you mentioned?_

 

A small bubble appeared on screen, it buffered and lingered for a few moments before Sana’s words filled the screen:

 

_Consider it my dream for the future._

 

“Congratulations Thomas, you have met a woman with a vision for the future,” Jeongyeon mocked with her hands dramatically panning in front of her, she called out after Jihyo after she left the room. “She’s gonna change this world! She’s the next Martin Luther King Junior! She’ll be in the history books I can tell you that!”  

 

Jihyo typed on her phone as she entered her dark room. The rapid letters appearing on screen lit up a small path for her to travel to her bed, she smiled softly once she sent the text, the warm feeling of hope wrapping around her chest. 

 

_I think that’s a beautiful dream._

 


	2. nothing made sense

Jihyo awoke to a familiar world, she heard Chaeyoung and Dahyun shouting from another room as Jeongyeon’s footsteps filled up the other space in their apartment.

 

She remained in bed before Chaeyoung burst into her room, an exasperated look while her hands flew around wildly.

 

“Were you the one who made that big ass mess in the living room?!”

 

Jihyo groaned loudly before throwing her blankets off her. She hid her shiver as her warm feet slid across freezing wood, and she reminded herself to beg Jeongyeon to replace the wood with carpet, or at least give her a rug.

 

“Because she’s up my ass about this mess that I didn’t even make. I was busy contemplating death last night, remember?!”

 

Jihyo’s head slowly turned to face the younger woman, she felt the morning sun shine on her slightly tinted skin yet the happiness of the morning sun hadn’t changed her mood in the slightest.

 

“If you were smarter, you would’ve gotten out of this hell hole while you had the chance. Welcome to hell Chae, you definitely won’t be enjoying your stay.”

 

Chaeyoung scowled at Jihyo, her lips forming the smallest of pout, causing a twinge of guilt to spring within her chest.

 

“Hey! Satan’s side hoe is in a fucking mood today!”

 

And the guilt withered in her chest before it even had a chance to bloom.

 

“Jihyo’s always like that, I warned your dumbass not to bother her before ten.” Jeongyeon called back.

 

Chaeyoung glanced back at the older woman, slightly smirking before leaning on the doorframe.

 

“But did you make the mess?” she asked quietly.

 

“Dahyun did, I heard her spilling the cereal last night.” Jihyo replied with a straight face, pulling the toothbrush up to her lips.

 

Chaeyoung bumped her head against the doorframe, she groaned into the wood before speaking. “I fucking knew she did.”

 

Jihyo only nodded in response and watched as she raced from her room and into the next, she chuckled as she heard something tumble from the other room and suddenly the incessant blares and chimes of an industrial sized vacuum cleaner overpowered their shouts.

 

And strangely, Jihyo never felt more at home.

 

But the shake that had vibrated from her phone seemed nothing in comparison to the other sounds in her apartment. Yet it seemed to dive out of the sea of other sounds, it grabbed her attention by its throat and claimed it as its own.

 

_When’s your first class?_

 

_Around 2_

 

_Do you want to meet me at Gwanggyo station? I’m exploring Seoul, maybe you could help me_

 

Jihyo eyed the large stacks of books and papers that were tucked neatly into the corner of her desk, had Jeongyeon not cleaned her room she was sure the papers would be scattered across her wooden desk. She sighed quietly, placing the phone down only to call for the older woman.

 

Jeongyeon’s head poked into her bathroom, the slightest look of concern bubbling within her irises. Her voice wavered as she spoke slowly.

 

“What’s up?”

 

She handed her phone to her, watching as Jeongyeon’s eyes narrowed and her eyebrows raised.

 

“Interesting, looks like Sana has a dream,” Jeongyeon said with a laugh, but she moved quickly out of the doorway as Jihyo’s hand swung forwards. “Wait! Wait, I was fucking around.”

 

“This isn’t a joke, I haven’t hung out in anyone but you guys… In like fucking years.” said Jihyo as she began to pace, she dropped her toothbrush onto the counter. She felt as if her chest was constricting but her heart and lungs were swelling, and it only resulted in a war between the two opposing forces, and she knew it could end with carnage.

 

Jeongyeon slinked into the bathroom, her eyes were obviously round with worry. She grabbed onto the younger woman, her hand tangled with Jihyo’s. A freezing coldness stabbed into her hands in the shape of shards, and she felt Jihyo tug on the warmth of her body, and she couldn’t help but let her yank her stability away.

 

She let out a shaky sigh, “You’ll be fine… You’re better at talking now, that old Jihyo is gone now,” she hesitated before speaking again, “You’re better, you know, you’ve- You’re good at talking now, that’s what I’m trying to say.”

 

Jihyo exhaled slowly, but the incessant feeling of anxiety had remained bonded to the inner layers of her lungs, and no matter how many times she breathed in and out. It stayed cemented to her veins and muscles, and they only continued to fester within the dark fissures of her lungs.

 

Jeongyeon placed a limp hand on her shoulder and shook it gently. “I can send one of the dumbasses with you. They don’t have classes till three today.”

 

Jihyo chuckled lightly, the silence between the two older women was quickly filled with quiet arguments from the younger pair. “No… They probably need to deal with whatever the fuck happened between the two of them.”

 

The older woman dramatically rolled her eyes while nodding. “Only God knows what we did to deserve them.”

 

Jihyo’s eyebrow spiked, “I swear I heard the slightest amount of affection in that.”

 

Jeongyeon’s smiling face cracked into a frown, her nose crinkled in feigned disgust. But Jihyo knew how much the older woman had grown to care for the younger two. It was easy to tell because roommates don’t actively take frequent naps together, and even if the couch isn’t big enough for four people, Jeongyeon always made sure they all fit, and surprisingly they always did. She would slide into Jeongyeon’s arms while Chaeyoung would wrap around Jihyo’s waist with the grip of someone terrified of letting go while Dahyun always had Chaeyoung tucked safely under her chin.

 

And even if Jeongyeon tried to play off as the detached one, she was the one that slipped into Jihyo’s bed late night when her sleep paralysis had hit her particularly hard.

 

“You’re gonna be fine dumbass.” Jeongyeon muttered as she pulled her hand off Jihyo’s shoulder, letting it hang limply to her side.

 

She sighed. “Thanks for the encouragement asshole.”

 

“No problem shit-face.” Jeongyeon shot back, Jihyo didn’t need to see her face to know that she probably had the biggest smirk and was probably holding back laughs.

 

_Sure, I’ll meet you at 12_

 

_:)_

 

It wasn’t long before Dahyun and Chaeyoung popped their heads into Jihyo’s room, knowing smirks on their face as they watched Jihyo lumber around in her room. She felt as if she was being stared down by two hyenas, their eyes slowly bouncing from one side of the room to the other following Jihyo’s paces with uncanny precision.

 

“I know you know.” Jihyo eventually blurted out, falling onto her beds with a huff.

 

“This is a big step, you can’t blame us for being excited.” Chaeyoung said with a smile.

 

“Yeah,” said Dahyun, popping out from Chaeyoung’s shadow, “It’s like watching our little baby grow up.”

 

Jihyo’s face dropped as she chased the younger two out of her room, swatting at their behinds as they scampered out. Only for her to see Jeongyeon’s smug face peak from her room.

 

* * *

   

Jihyo walked across the platform with Sana practically glued to her side, the older woman’s arm was wrapped tightly around her waist while her hand was sprawled across her stomach. Every little twitch of her finger sent shocks deep into Jihyo’s skin which only caused a fluttering feeling to float its way upwards.

 

Sana’s words came out of the blue, after searching through the endless shops in Seoul, which resulted in Sana buying some decorations for her house, the tiniest plant which originated from Japan, Jihyo thought it had no chance of surviving through the harshities of Korea, but she didn’t have the heart to tell the enamoured woman that, so instead she smiled and told her it was cute.

 

“Are you going to the library today?” Sana asked her as she handed the cashier a few won.

 

“Yeah, my roommates and I are planning to study for finals together.” Jihyo replied with an innocent glance to the plant.

 

“Why don’t you invite your roommates over to my place? I’m studying for finals too, and you can meet my roommates.” Sana suggested with a grin that seemed innocent at first, but the way her voice strained made it seem as if she was begging.

 

Jihyo laughed, imagining Jeongyeon prancing around Sana’s imaginary house. “Are you sure? I have three other roommates.”

 

They walked out of the shop and were slapped with a freezing breeze, despite the harshity of the wind, it brought a gentle red tint to their faces.

 

Sana’s eyes widened, “I only have two. Mina and Tzuyu.”

 

“I have Jeongyeon, Dahyun and Chaeyoung,” Jihyo said with an exhausted sigh, “Among the four of us, there’s a singular brain cell and Jeongyeon and I have to share it.”

 

That had sent Sana into a fit of laughter, her laugh was sweet sounding it contrasted the abrupt and loud sounds of cars honking and the harsh way Korean spilled from stranger’s lips. It was high pitched and innocent, it was nothing Jihyo was used to, and yet it was everything she had ever craved for.

 

“I really want to meet them, and Mina and Tzuyu need some friends. They just got here and they don’t talk much.” Sana explained as they walked down several streets and entered into a coffee shop.

 

“I’ll text them, but I feel like they’ll say yes anyways.”

 

Jihyo clicked on the groupchat and scrolled past a few captionless pictures of various messes throughout the apartment, the most recent being a rather clear picture of a bowl of cereal left on the counter but cereal had been spilled across the granite table.

 

Sana’s head had rested on Jihyo’s shoulder, the weight was uncomfortable at first, but Jihyo felt Sana’s cheek puff against hers as she smiled at the pictures, and suddenly the weight had faded from her concerns.

 

“She’s a clean freak.” Jihyo explained.

 

_We’re hanging out at Sana’s house tonight, bring your books and stuff._

 

Jeongyeon replied first as usual.

 

_Look who’s acting bossy…_

 

_What time does she want us?_

 

_7_

 

Jihyo shut her phone off and tucked it into her pocket. “If she comes, they’ll be coming too.”

 

Sana nodded while ordering a coffee, a quiet coughing fit came from a lone man in the corner of the shop, his fit acted as a swoosh, a sea of people swarmed towards the center of the shop, they raised masks over their faces while some covered their children's’ mouths and noses. In a matter of seconds, the coffee shop had turned into a set piece for ‘Train to Busan’.

 

Jihyo groaned as she reached into her bag for a mask. “This whole outbreak is driving people mad.”

 

“They’re all worrying for nothing, it’ll stay in Busan.” Sana mumbled as she was handed two coffees.

 

Jihyo wanted to question her, every fragment of her scientific brain was racing. It made perfect sense for the disease to strike Seoul next, it would be just like the horror movies, everyone would flood into Seoul imagining safety within the stone walls and neon lights, but they had only sprinted into another pitch black city, not knowing they carried the disease and were destined to doom the entire population because they let themselves be drowned within ignorance and fear.

 

Instead she swallowed her curiosity for the first time in her life, it was odd to live without having her questions answered. For every thing she wondered about life, science always had an answer, it was what attracted her to the field in the first place.

 

Ignorance settled to the pit of her stomach like a solid rock, no matter how quickly she drank the coffee, she failed in attempting to make the burdensome stone float, she felt the stone crash into her intelligence and watched as years of endless pursuit of knowledge become meaningless shards.

 

Jihyo felt slender fingers trace across her skin, the quietest gasp spills from her lips and she prayed Sana didn’t hear her.

 

Every aspect of Sana seemed so wrong and yet so right, she acted as if she had lived in Seoul for years, as if her roots were planted in Seoul dirt, that she had been raised on Seoul sunshine and rain. She blended in smoothly into Korean society, her face managed to glow with the divine beauty of a thousand angels within Korea’s grey and stormy skies; something not even native Koreans knew how to do.

   
As a scientist at heart Jihyo had painfully rested many occurrences on Earth as mysteries, after months of endless research and loops, nights of reviewing data over and over again; as if her piercing eyes would be able to change impossible numbers into something that could at least be explained. She concluded that simply some moments could not be summed up by frigid and bitter number, some things were too far complex for the human mind to prod and explore into. But every fiber of her being fought against Sana’s predictions, there were too many spaces of absolutely nothing, dark voids in her theories where information should’ve calmly rested in. It drove her insane; yet Sana’s sweet smiles and comforting voice had lulled her inner scientist into a gentle sleep.

 

And for the first time Jihyo breathed without carrying the weight of the world in her lungs. Instead she let Sana consume her whole, she smiled as her laughs leap from her strawberry red lips and onto her slightly sunkissed skin. The hot air from her laugher trailed gently across her skin, sending a dulled ticklish feeling up and down her spine. She rubbed softly at the patches of pastel pink where Sana’s laughs had landed gracefully and allowed her words- her rickety, nonsense words to fill every crevice in her chest.

 

Nothing made sense.

 

Sana glanced upwards and gave her a sweet smile; her fingers inter-tangled with her's as she quietly hummed to a song that sounded beautiful, but was unknown to Jihyo.

 

But maybe it was meant to be that way. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna try to update at least once weekly, but who knows how that'll end up lmao. You guys will get more roommate interaction soon, and some foreign line interaction. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed and let me know what you guys think about Sana and Jihyo's relationship I'm curious ;).


	3. let's meet somewhere nicer

 

Jihyo awoke to a familiar world, she heard Chaeyoung and Dahyun shouting from another room as Jeongyeon’s footsteps filled up the other space in their apartment.

 

She remained in bed before Chaeyoung burst into her room, an exasperated look while her hands flew around wildly.

 

“Were you the one who made that big ass mess in the living room?!”

 

Jihyo groaned loudly before throwing her blankets off her. She hid her shiver as her warm feet slid across freezing wood, and she reminded herself to beg Jeongyeon to replace the wood with carpet, or at least give her a rug.

 

“Because she’s up my ass about this mess that I didn’t even make. I was busy contemplating death last night, remember?!”

 

Jihyo’s head slowly turned to face the younger woman, she felt the morning sun shine on her slightly tinted skin yet the happiness of the morning sun hadn’t changed her mood in the slightest.

 

“If you were smarter, you would’ve gotten out of this hell hole while you had the chance. Welcome to hell Chae, you definitely won’t be enjoying your stay.”

 

Chaeyoung scowled at Jihyo, her lips forming the smallest of pout, causing a twinge of guilt to spring within her chest.

 

“Hey! Satan’s side hoe is in a fucking mood today!”

 

And the guilt withered in her chest before it even had a chance to bloom.

 

“Jihyo’s always like that, I warned your dumbass not to bother her before ten.” Jeongyeon called back.

 

Chaeyoung glanced back at the older woman, slightly smirking before leaning on the doorframe.

 

“But did you make the mess?” she asked quietly.

 

“Dahyun did, I heard her spilling the cereal last night.” Jihyo replied with a straight face, pulling the toothbrush up to her lips.

 

Chaeyoung bumped her head against the doorframe, she groaned into the wood before speaking. “I fucking knew she did.”

 

Jihyo only nodded in response and watched as she raced from her room and into the next, she chuckled as she heard something tumble from the other room and suddenly the incessant blares and chimes of an industrial sized vacuum cleaner overpowered their shouts.

 

And strangely, Jihyo never felt more at home.

 

But the shake that had vibrated from her phone seemed nothing in comparison to the other sounds in her apartment. Yet it seemed to dive out of the sea of other sounds, it grabbed her attention by its throat and claimed it as its own.

 

_When’s your first class?_

 

_Around 2_

 

_Do you want to meet me at Gwanggyo station? I’m exploring Seoul, maybe you could help me_

 

Jihyo eyed the large stacks of books and papers that were tucked neatly into the corner of her desk, had Jeongyeon not cleaned her room she was sure the papers would be scattered across her wooden desk. She sighed quietly, placing the phone down only to call for the older woman.

 

Jeongyeon’s head poked into her bathroom, the slightest look of concern bubbling within her irises. Her voice wavered as she spoke slowly.

 

“What’s up?”

 

She handed her phone to her, watching as Jeongyeon’s eyes narrowed and her eyebrows raised.

 

“Interesting, looks like Sana has a dream,” Jeongyeon said with a laugh, but she moved quickly out of the doorway as Jihyo’s hand swung forwards. “Wait! Wait, I was fucking around.”

 

“This isn’t a joke, I haven’t hung out in anyone but you guys… In like fucking years.” said Jihyo as she began to pace, she dropped her toothbrush onto the counter. She felt as if her chest was constricting but her heart and lungs were swelling, and it only resulted in a war between the two opposing forces, and she knew it could end with carnage.

 

Jeongyeon slinked into the bathroom, her eyes were obviously round with worry. She grabbed onto the younger woman, her hand tangled with Jihyo’s. A freezing coldness stabbed into her hands in the shape of shards, and she felt Jihyo tug on the warmth of her body, and she couldn’t help but let her yank her stability away.

 

She let out a shaky sigh, “You’ll be fine… You’re better at talking now, that old Jihyo is gone now,” she hesitated before speaking again, “You’re better, you know, you’ve- You’re good at talking now, that’s what I’m trying to say.”

 

Jihyo exhaled slowly, but the incessant feeling of anxiety had remained bonded to the inner layers of her lungs, and no matter how many times she breathed in and out. It stayed cemented to her veins and muscles, and they only continued to fester within the dark fissures of her lungs.

 

Jeongyeon placed a limp hand on her shoulder and shook it gently. “I can send one of the dumbasses with you. They don’t have classes till three today.”

 

Jihyo chuckled lightly, the silence between the two older women was quickly filled with quiet arguments from the younger pair. “No… They probably need to deal with whatever the fuck happened between the two of them.”

 

The older woman dramatically rolled her eyes while nodding. “Only God knows what we did to deserve them.”

 

Jihyo’s eyebrow spiked, “I swear I heard the slightest amount of affection in that.”

 

Jeongyeon’s smiling face cracked into a frown, her nose crinkled in feigned disgust. But Jihyo knew how much the older woman had grown to care for the younger two. It was easy to tell because roommates don’t actively take frequent naps together, and even if the couch isn’t big enough for four people, Jeongyeon always made sure they all fit, and surprisingly they always did. She would slide into Jeongyeon’s arms while Chaeyoung would wrap around Jihyo’s waist with the grip of someone terrified of letting go while Dahyun always had Chaeyoung tucked safely under her chin.

 

And even if Jeongyeon tried to play off as the detached one, she was the one that slipped into Jihyo’s bed late night when her sleep paralysis had hit her particularly hard.

 

“You’re gonna be fine dumbass.” Jeongyeon muttered as she pulled her hand off Jihyo’s shoulder, letting it hang limply to her side.

 

She sighed. “Thanks for the encouragement asshole.”

 

“No problem shit-face.” Jeongyeon shot back, Jihyo didn’t need to see her face to know that she probably had the biggest smirk and was probably holding back laughs.

 

_Sure, I’ll meet you at 12_

 

_:)_

 

It wasn’t long before Dahyun and Chaeyoung popped their heads into Jihyo’s room, knowing smirks on their face as they watched Jihyo lumber around in her room. She felt as if she was being stared down by two hyenas, their eyes slowly bouncing from one side of the room to the other following Jihyo’s paces with uncanny precision.

 

“I know you know.” Jihyo eventually blurted out, falling onto her beds with a huff.

 

“This is a big step, you can’t blame us for being excited.” Chaeyoung said with a smile.

 

“Yeah,” said Dahyun, popping out from Chaeyoung’s shadow, “It’s like watching our little baby grow up.”

 

Jihyo’s face dropped as she chased the younger two out of her room, swatting at their behinds as they scampered out. Only for her to see Jeongyeon’s smug face peak from her room.

   

* * *

 

Jihyo walked across the platform with Sana practically glued to her side, the older woman’s arm was wrapped tightly around her waist while her hand was sprawled across her stomach. Every little twitch of her finger sent shocks deep into Jihyo’s skin which only caused a fluttering feeling to float its way upwards.

 

Sana’s words came out of the blue, after searching through the endless shops in Seoul, which resulted in Sana buying some decorations for her house, the tiniest plant which originated from Japan, Jihyo thought it had no chance of surviving through the harshities of Korea, but she didn’t have the heart to tell the enamoured woman that, so instead she smiled and told her it was cute.

 

“Are you going to the library today?” Sana asked her as she handed the cashier a few won.

 

“Yeah, my roommates and I are planning to study for finals together.” Jihyo replied with an innocent glance to the plant.

 

“Why don’t you invite your roommates over to my place? I’m studying for finals too, and you can meet my roommates.” Sana suggested with a grin that seemed innocent at first, but the way her voice strained made it seem as if she was begging.

 

Jihyo laughed, imagining Jeongyeon prancing around Sana’s imaginary house. “Are you sure? I have three other roommates.”

 

They walked out of the shop and were slapped with a freezing breeze, despite the harshity of the wind, it brought a gentle red tint to their faces.

 

Sana’s eyes widened, “I only have two. Mina and Tzuyu.”

 

“I have Jeongyeon, Dahyun and Chaeyoung,” Jihyo said with an exhausted sigh, “Among the four of us, there’s a singular brain cell and Jeongyeon and I have to share it.”

 

That had sent Sana into a fit of laughter, her laugh was sweet sounding it contrasted the abrupt and loud sounds of cars honking and the harsh way Korean spilled from stranger’s lips. It was high pitched and innocent, it was nothing Jihyo was used to, and yet it was everything she had ever craved for.

 

“I really want to meet them, and Mina and Tzuyu need some friends. They just got here and they don’t talk much.” Sana explained as they walked down several streets and entered into a coffee shop.

 

“I’ll text them, but I feel like they’ll say yes anyways.”

 

Jihyo clicked on the groupchat and scrolled past a few captionless pictures of various messes throughout the apartment, the most recent being a rather clear picture of a bowl of cereal left on the counter but cereal had been spilled across the granite table.

 

Sana’s head had rested on Jihyo’s shoulder, the weight was uncomfortable at first, but Jihyo felt Sana’s cheek puff against hers as she smiled at the pictures, and suddenly the weight had faded from her concerns.

 

“She’s a clean freak.” Jihyo explained.

 

_We’re hanging out at Sana’s house tonight, bring your books and stuff._

 

Jeongyeon replied first as usual.

 

_Look who’s acting bossy…_

 

_What time does she want us?_

 

_7_

 

Jihyo shut her phone off and tucked it into her pocket. “If she comes, they’ll be coming too.”

 

Sana nodded while ordering a coffee, a quiet coughing fit came from a lone man in the corner of the shop, his fit acted as a swoosh, a sea of people swarmed towards the center of the shop, they raised masks over their faces while some covered their children's’ mouths and noses. In a matter of seconds, the coffee shop had turned into a set piece for ‘Train to Busan’.

 

Jihyo groaned as she reached into her bag for a mask. “This whole outbreak is driving people mad.”

 

“They’re all worrying for nothing, it’ll stay in Busan.” Sana mumbled as she was handed two coffees.

 

Jihyo wanted to question her, every fragment of her scientific brain was racing. It made perfect sense for the disease to strike Seoul next, it would be just like the horror movies, everyone would flood into Seoul imagining safety within the stone walls and neon lights, but they had only sprinted into another pitch black city, not knowing they carried the disease and were destined to doom the entire population because they let themselves be drowned within ignorance and fear.

 

Instead she swallowed her curiosity for the first time in her life, it was odd to live without having her questions answered. For every thing she wondered about life, science always had an answer, it was what attracted her to the field in the first place.

 

Ignorance settled to the pit of her stomach like a solid rock, no matter how quickly she drank the coffee, she failed in attempting to make the burdensome stone float, she felt the stone crash into her intelligence and watched as years of endless pursuit of knowledge become meaningless shards.

 

Jihyo felt slender fingers trace across her skin, the quietest gasp spills from her lips and she prayed Sana didn’t hear her.

 

Every aspect of Sana seemed so wrong and yet so right, she acted as if she had lived in Seoul for years, as if her roots were planted in Seoul dirt, that she had been raised on Seoul sunshine and rain. She blended in smoothly into Korean society, her face managed to glow with the divine beauty of a thousand angels within Korea’s grey and stormy skies; something not even native Koreans knew how to do.

   
As a scientist at heart Jihyo had painfully rested many occurrences on Earth as mysteries, after months of endless research and loops, nights of reviewing data over and over again; as if her piercing eyes would be able to change impossible numbers into something that could at least be explained. She concluded that simply some moments could not be summed up by frigid and bitter number, some things were too far complex for the human mind to prod and explore into. But every fiber of her being fought against Sana’s predictions, there were too many spaces of absolutely nothing, dark voids in her theories where information should’ve calmly rested in. It drove her insane; yet Sana’s sweet smiles and comforting voice had lulled her inner scientist into a gentle sleep.

 

And for the first time Jihyo breathed without carrying the weight of the world in her lungs. Instead she let Sana consume her whole, she smiled as her laughs leap from her strawberry red lips and onto her slightly sunkissed skin. The hot air from her laugher trailed gently across her skin, sending a dulled ticklish feeling up and down her spine. She rubbed softly at the patches of pastel pink where Sana’s laughs had landed gracefully and allowed her words- her rickety, nonsense words to fill every crevice in her chest.

 

Nothing made sense.

 

Sana glanced upwards and gave her a sweet smile; her fingers inter-tangled with her's as she quietly hummed to a song that sounded beautiful, but was unknown to Jihyo.

 

But maybe it was meant to be that way. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna try to update at least once weekly, but who knows how that'll end up lmao. You guys will get more roommate interaction soon, and some foreign line interaction.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed and let me know what you guys think about Sana and Jihyo's relationship I'm curious ;).


	4. wine and moonlight

 

Jeongyeon slammed onto the horn as she glared upwards, her head bent awkwardly as she tried to peer up their apartment stairs.

  
Suddenly the door burst open as two younger girls scrambled out of their room, a blur of blonde hair and pale skin sped down the stairs while Chaeyoung hopped after her while also stuffing her foot into one of her shoes.

 

A few moments after the door swung open behind them and Jihyo watched with a poorly hidden smile as the two younger girls clambered into the back seats.

 

Chaeyoung sat quickly and then flashed them dumb smile while her eyes nearly shut, she took deep breaths before speaking. “I’d just like to say we’re not as late as Jeong was on Dahyun’s birthday.”

 

Jeongyeon groaned loudly as she slammed her head onto the steering while the other three’s skull shaking laughs echoed throughout the car.

 

“Okay but Jihyo was thirty minutes late.”

 

“I was getting the cake!”

 

“Sure you were.” Jeongyeon said with a pursed lips as she pulled her head from the wheel.

 

* * *

  

“So….” a voice peeped from the back. “How was Sana?”

 

“Was she ethereal, heart stopping?-”

 

“Did she rock your pussy like a damn boat?” Jeongyeon asked with a loud laugh.

 

Jihyo’s head spun to face the smirking older woman, “No, that’s how you got an STD and we had to spend rent money so your pussy didn’t explode.”

 

Jeongyeon’s finger flew up as her mouth dropped ever so slightly. “First off, it wasn’t an STD, it was an infection unrelated to sex-”

 

“Sure,” Jihyo replied quickly with a hidden smile, “All I know is that you must be a mutant with all that damn medicine you took.”

 

“Shut up before I knock the titty out of you.” Jeongyeon threatened as she playfully swatted at Jihyo’s chest.

 

“If we talk about Jeong’s pussy at Sana’s house I’m literally gonna throw myself out the window.” Chaeyoung informed them as she popped her head through the small space between the two seats.

 

Jeongyeon’s fingers thumped against the steering wheel as she grinned in the darkness.

 

“If they bring up anyone’s cooch I’m gonna throw up.” Dahyun piped up.

  

* * *

 

“Hello!” Sana greeted happily as she opened the door, instantly the smell of cinnamon flooded the hallway and nearly tugged them into the apartment.

 

“You two must be Chaeyoung and Dahyun.” Sana chirped as she patted the duo’s head.

 

Dahyun smiled widely as she nodded. “I’m Dahyun.”

 

The Japanese woman smiled in return and squeezed her pale cheek before pulling the older two in.

 

“Mina and Tzuyu are getting some food ready, till then make yourself at home.

 

Jihyo entered the living room with slight caution, her eyes scanned the room as her friends followed shortly behind her.

 

The night sky filled the opposing wall, it was pure glass and it stretched from both corners. A sharply made couch shined in the glory of the night sky while shades of indigo and violet crept into every crevice of the room.

 

A large tv hung from the wall and played a show in a language Jihyo couldn’t understand.

 

It wasn’t hard to tell that the room was made by and for the luxurious. Modernly styled furniture that combated Korean minimalism and adopted a certain complexity from a region unknown to her.

 

She felt a gentle tug on her sleeve and sat onto the couch, despite its sharp angles and bold colors, it was comfortable.

 

Soon the three women entered the room, the two shyer ones let Sana pave the road into the living room, they said their hellos and sat quietly while Sana chatted away.

 

“What’re you studying Chaeyoung?” she asked while smiling.

 

“I’m an art major.” she replied with a hint of pride, her eyes gleaming while her lips curled at the end.

 

Sana clapped happily as she further asked Chaeyoung more questions, Jihyo smiled and she could feel Jeongyeon’s prideful grin burrowing into the back of head. They watched as Chaeyoung boasted about her new showcase and immediately recoiled in feigned embarrassment as Sana praised her.

 

“Chaeng-casso.”

 

Chaeyoung felt a light burst from her lips as she turned to face the tanner girl who had sat quietly before but now sat with a wide smile.

 

She spoke with the slightest of hesitation, the girl’s endless tanned skin and dark cascading hair had caught her tongue by surprise. “I’ll take it.”

 

Tzuyu flashed her a quick smile, her shining teeth catching the scarce gleam from outside.

 

Sana smiled proudly before walking towards the kitchen, her hand barely flicked in the air; catching Jihyo’s attention, she quickly followed after the Japanese girl, her nose instantly filled with the scent of her sweet perfume she felt her lungs twitch and beg for the airy scent of cherry blossoms with the scarce smell of citrus.

 

“Tzuyu doesn’t like to talk.” Sana explained quietly as she began to pull plates from cabinets with sharp edges and a gentle gleam.

 

Sana turned and faced Jihyo with a wide smile. “She’s even shyer when she meets people for the first time,” she laughed to herself quietly,”But she’s talking to Chaeyoung just fine.”

 

“Is that a good thing?” asked Jihyo.

 

“It’s an amazing thing.” Sana assured with a grin.

 

Her words barely spilt out of her lips, they fell gracefully before rising to Jihyo’s ears, bringing a newfound world of sweetness for her to explore.

 

“You don’t know how much it means to me that you came,” she said softly, her hand traced across Jihyo’s arm, it twitched as it slowly moved up her arm, but her hand wavered for a second as it barely hovered above the intense heat radiating off Jihyo’s flesh before she pulled her arm back with a quiet gulp. “They need people like Dahyun and Chaeyoung and Jeongyeon-”

 

She paused for a second, her eyes grazing across Jihyo’s face, absorbing every laughter line and every pool of color that had spread across her face. “Like how I need you.”

 

Strained laugher pressed their way through the gaps between Jihyo’s clenched teeth, “We’re… We’re happy to help.”

 

Laughter erupted from the other room, it wasn’t airy like Jeongyeon’s nor was it staggered and filled with youth like the younger duo’s. It was a quiet giggle that came to an abrupt stop.

 

Sana sighed before smiling again. “I don’t hear that often.”

 

Jihyo laughed awkwardly as she pressed herself against the cool counter, desperately trying to shave off some of the incessant heat that was radiating off her.

 

“Hear what?” she asked.

 

“Them laughing like that,” Sana mumbled with a distant smile, “It’s a nice sound.”

 

Jihyo nodded, “I like it.”

 

“Hearing them laugh- your roomates I mean,” Sana began, “It makes you happy right?”

 

Jihyo dramatically rolled her eyes in the darkness of the kitchen, “Hearing Chae and Dahyun’s loud ass laugh at the ass crack of dawn has made me question my sanity multiple times.”

 

“And Jeongyeon’s laugh isn’t half as loud, but she folds in on herself like a damn chair,” Jihyo paused to sigh, “But for some reason it’s the same thing I want to wake up to every morning for the rest of my life.”

 

Laughter erupted again, cackles and giggles floated through the air and found their home within Jihyo’s lungs.

 

“They make living easier.” Sana said softly, her voice had dramatically lowered, her words had been swallowed by the laughter but Jihyo could still find their remains within the air.

 

“They’re absolute fools, complete idiots- But I’m a sucker for dumbasses.” Jihyo replied with a quiet laugh.

 

Within their shared silence a quiet voice from the living room spoke.

  
“Are they fucking or something? What’s taking so long?”

 

Sana smirked at the younger woman before whisking the plate of snacks off into the living room.

 

“Sorry it took so long.” Sana apologized as she flashed the group a bright smile.

 

* * *

  

“Who’s your favorite artist?” Tzuyu asked as she lead Chaeyoung to her room.

 

“Van Gogh.” Chaeyoung replied as she looked around Tzuyu’s room in curiosity.

 

“Hm, I thought it’d be Picasso.” said Tzuyu as she rummaged through her desk.

 

“Now that you’ve mentioned it. I’ve always been a fan of cubism, but I’ve always liked surreal and post impressionism art... “ Chaeyoung murmured as her mind began to rummage through the countless paintings and sculptures lodged into every crevice of her brain.

 

“Do you like impressionist artists?” Tzuyu asked as she glanced back towards the shorter girl.

 

“Like Monet?... Pissarro? Sisley?...”

 

Tzuyu laughed as she walked back towards her with a white envelope tucked between her fingers. “I meant more like Kang Seulgi.”

 

Chaeyoung’s eyes stretched as they tried to contain the weight of her name, her mouth slowly hung open as choked words scrambled out of her mouth.

 

“Kang…. Kang Seulgi… The Kang Seulgi…. The same Kang Seulgi who’s known for creating all beauty on Earth?...” she mumbled.

 

Tzuyu glanced at the envelope as she smiled. “Well I don’t know if she created all beauty… But yeah, that Kang Seulgi.”

 

Chaeyoung let out a dramatic sigh as her eyes seemed to bubble with pure admiration. “She’s amazing, her art echoes all the beauty in the world.”

 

The taller girl flipped the envelope towards her, “You should go, and you know, see all the beauty with your own eyes.”

 

She blinked for a few seconds, her eyes narrowing as her brain began to run at full speed. “I’ve wanted to go to one of her showcases ever since I saw her first portrait.”

 

She tilted backwards and peeked out the door quickly before she leaned forward. “Jeong and Jihyo worked overtime to get the cash to buy me a ticket, but it ended up being sold out before they could buy one.”

 

Tzuyu handed the envelope to her, “Consider it gift from them, I hope you have fun.”

 

The shorter woman looked up hesitantly, Tzuyu watched as she trembled ever so slightly before her voice slowly began to crawl from between her lips.

 

“Are you sure?...” she asked slowly, “Her art isn’t something you should miss out on.”

 

“Don’t worry about it,” she said with a reassuring smile, “I have classes then anyways.”

 

Chaeyoung’s lips pulled to reveal a youthful grin, “I’ll make it up to you.”

 

Tzuyu marvelled at the smaller woman’s bright smile, the way the light shined off her abnormally sharp canine and the way her eyes were beginning to glimmer. Her skin pooled into colorful shades of a pale rose, the slight shades of red that had begun to flood into her cheeks when she caught Tzuyu staring.

 

The words came out awkward as they stumbled out of her mouth. “I look forward to it.”

 

* * *

  

Jihyo looked up from her textbook and yawned.

 

“Tired already?” Jeongyeon said as she smirked and flipped through the pages of her notebook.

 

Jihyo scowled as she absentmindedly flipped the pencil between her fingers.

 

“How about some drinks?” Mina suggested, she turned to Sana and smiled softly when the older woman nodded in agreement.

 

“Well… We’ve all worked hard, haven’t we?” said Sana as she got up from the floor and stretched lightly before walking back into the kitchen, Mina trailed closely behind her.

 

Jeongyeon lifted her notebook to expose the phone sitting on her lap, “Jokes on her, I’ve been researching the ways butt implants can go terribly wrong for the past two hours.”

 

The younger duo snickered from the ground, Chaeyoung flipped onto her back and glanced upwards towards the older woman. “So how can it go wrong?”

 

“Why?” Dahyun asked as she faced her younger counterpart, “You interested?”

 

Chaeyoung hid her smile as she spoke. “Perhaps… Maybe they have a two for one deal, like if Jeongyeon and I go together, it’ll only cost as much as one implant.”

 

Jihyo looked up from her book, “Are you getting these implants in the middle of a farmer’s market?”

 

“I’m just saying, it’d be a nice deal.”

 

“I’m not getting my ass pumped Chae.” Jeongyeon muttered back as she continued to scroll on her phone.

 

Sana returned with Mina, they carried a large bottle with seven glasses being balanced within their arms.

 

Jeongyeon’s eyes widened as she leaned forward in her seat. “That’s no fucking soju…”

 

Sana laughed lightly as she began to pour a dark crimson liquid into their glasses, it spun within the clear glass as lighter shades of red began to shine under the light.

 

“Mina’s a big fan of wine. I prefer sake myself.” Sana explained as she continued to pour.

 

Mina nodded, “It’s getting quite popular in Japan, I’m surprised it’s not more popular in Korea.”

 

Jeongyeon’s eyes remained wide as she stared at the spinning liquid. “Most people in Korea can’t even afford good soju, let alone wine…”

 

Jihyo stared at the older woman and pressed into her thigh until her head snapped backwards.

 

Jihyo’s eyebrows flew upwards as she motioned towards the two women staring awkwardly back at them.

 

She chuckled weakly as she rubbed her hands across her pants. “It’s a joke, plenty of Koreans can afford wine… We just prefer soju.”

 

“I have some in the fridge if you’d-”

 

Dahyun flew from the ground and gripped onto her glass, the table shook slightly as she quickly began to speak. “We’re fine! Wine’s great- Wine’s amazing.”

 

A small hand slithered onto the table and lowered a glass below the table.  

 

“It’s empty.”

 

Sana blinked slowly as she lowered the bottle to below the table and the sound of liquid clashing against glass and then swirling endlessly filled the quiet living room as Jihyo rubbed her forehead in embarrassment .

 

Chaeyoung’s voice echoed from under the table. “Thank you for my life ma’am.”

 

“No problem.” Sana said with an awkward but shining smile.

 

Jihyo shut her eyes as she cringed slightly. “I’m so sorry Sana, I honestly don’t know what’s gotten into them.”

 

“It’s alright, you should see how Mina acts when we run out of wine too,” Sana said with a loud laugh, “It’s something completely primal, I wouldn’t be surprised if she hissed at us one day.”

 

Mina laughed before a tanner hand slid from under the table and gently tapped the glass against the wood. “Mine is empty too.”

 

Sana continued to converse with the older duo as she tipped the bottle towards the glass and the air exploded into a tidal wave of grapes raised with the Spanish sun beating its flesh while the bare hints of vanilla and bitterness rushed into their lungs. All while the younger three sipped on their glasses and occasionally giggled.

 

* * *

 

A continuous stream of words slipped from their lips, Sana told endless stories about their adventures together in Korea, laughs left their lungs easily, this marked a first for Jihyo, her lungs no longer constricted the way they always did when the air flooding her body simply couldn’t be used to make laughter.

 

There was a point in her life where laughter had become foreign to her, the way it made her lungs ached burned more than it ever had, and laughter quickly became a brutal invader.

 

The sounds of Sana’s voice, Chaeyoung’s giggles and the occasional thumps against the table all blended into one soothing ballad that lulled her into a state of calm.

 

But the airy gasps as strained laughter pushed through shining teeth was missing from her world, the younger woman turned to face Jeongyeon, her eyelids had slid over her eyes as she lazily followed Sana’s excited arm flappings in the distance.

 

Her eyes rolled to the side as she stared back at Jihyo.

 

“What’s up Thomas?” she mouthed.

 

“You okay?” she mouthed back, her voice barely raising.

 

She shrugged back in response, Chaeyoung and Dahyun’s giggly laughter cut through the air and nearly every muscle in Jeongyeon’s face twitched as her eyes sped towards Sana and watched as the Japanese woman laughed along with them, her face lighting up as the younger duo crashed into her.

 

Jihyo watched as Jeongyeon’s focus returned to her, her jaw clenched before wine fled into her gritted teeth and tight jaw.

 

A louder laugh rang through the air and a painful shudder ran through Jeongyeon’s body as she clenched onto the cup.

 

Jeongyeon stared at the bottle as envy began to eat away at her flesh, bitter hatred shot from her bones as the price sticker caught her eye.

 

Weeks of working overtime wouldn’t even be enough to buy a drop of their wine, and she knew above all how much the younger two must’ve loved how sweet it tasted as it ran smoothly down their throat.

 

The cheap beer she carried in her arms as she sprinted back home after endless shifts would never be as sweet as crushed berries. It was simply never going to be enough.

 

Jihyo’s eyes met Jeongyeon’s as she quietly muttered, “Hey, it’s alright… Just chill.”

 

She placed her cup onto the table and huffed quietly, hot air laced with the fragrant smell of berries brushed against the tender flesh of Jihyo’s face.

 

“Ass.” she mouthed.

 

Jeongyeon smirked and ripples of warmth sped across Jihyo’s chest, “You know it.” she replied with a familiar smile.

 

She pulled her phone out of pocket, the bright light of the screen poured over her barely tanned skin.

 

Jihyo watched as her jaw barely unhinged, her eyes widened as she continued to swipe at her screen.

 

“What’s wrong?” she asked as she moved closer to Jeongyeon.

 

The laughter and endless side conversations came to a halt, prickly silence filled the spaces between them.

 

A few words bubbled to the surface: _Local Library Caught on Fire._

 

Jihyo turned to face the huddled group of women watching them with wide eyes. “The library caught on fire.”

 

She watched as Chaeyoung’s and Dahyun’s face contorted for a few seconds before easing into a settled state of disturbance, their lives had quickly been stolen from the flames that were intent on burning them till their memories were reduced to nothing but blackened ash.

 

Sana’s face remained blank as she stared ahead, she shook her head sadly while asking. “Is anyone hurt?”

 

“I’m sure,” Jeongyeon replied, “They said there’s some injuries because students were in there studying for finals…”

 

“Was Nayeon in there?” Chaeyoung asked with worried eyes.

 

Jeongyeon shook her head. “She told me she was working tonight.”

  
A quiet sigh of relief slipped from the younger girl’s lips.

 

Jihyo glanced towards her roommates, Dahyun kept a steady arm wrapped around Chaeyoung’s shoulder while she glanced out the window while Jeongyeon’s slender fingers began to twirl the softest tufts of grey hair.

 

Her eyes drifted to Sana’s warm brown, her lips twitched as they formed a small frown. Sana’s eyes echoed the same concern, she placed her hand onto Dahyun’s back and rubbed slowly as she comforted the younger girl.

 

Jihyo gulped slowly. “I think we should start going…”

 

Jeongyeon quickly leapt from the couch and collected their coats as Sana helped the younger duo up from the ground.

 

Sana rubbed Dahyun’s shoulders as she helped move them towards the doorway, where Jeongyeon stood awkwardly with several jackets hanging from her arms.

 

The other three left the apartment leaving Sana and Jihyo standing in the doorway.

 

Sana’s eyes glanced towards something behind Jihyo, she cleared her throat, catching the attention of her roommates, they promptly fled the living room and the sound of doors closing followed quickly after them.

 

Jihyo glanced towards Sana’s fluttering lips and felt herself fall into a state of bliss, the soft pink that tinged the innermost parts of her plump lips caught the moonlight as she stared back towards her.

 

A shaky breath jerked its way through her loose lips and dispersed into the cold wind. “I should thank you for saving us,”

 

Sana’s head barely cocked to the side as she looked up to Jihyo with her warm brown eyes as her lashes flickered.

 

“I mean like, we would’ve gone to the library if it wasn’t for you.” Jihyo awkwardly explained.

 

Sana chuckled to herself as she rubbed Jihyo’s shoulder, “Don’t worry about it, I’d save you and your friends a thousand times over.”

 

“Let’s meet again.” Sana murmured.

 

“Let’s meet again.” Jihyo echoed with more strength before leaving the apartment.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So my promise of weekly updates went out the window lmao. I'm determined to finish this story though, so don't worry about that. 
> 
> I wanted to show how the foreign line (excluding Momo) interacted vs how 3mix (minus Nayeon) interacted, and I wanted to show the budding feelings between the two groups ;). 
> 
> Let me know what you think ;).


	5. soju drowns out memories

 

Jihyo glanced back towards the backseats, Dahyun and Chaeyoung’s mouths hung open with loud snores echoing towards the silent front seats.

 

She turned forward and let out a sigh of relief before seeing the paleness of Jeongyeon’s knuckles while she rammed her nails into the cheap leather that covered their steering wheel. Her jaw was tense and Jihyo knew without a doubt that the gritted teeth that shot through her sharp tongue were all rooted within the image of a pretty girl who spoke softly yet confidently and always with a hint of snark lurking beneath her kind glances and touches.

 

“You don’t like Sana do you?” Jihyo whispered.

 

She let out a sigh ridden chuckle, “Was it that obvious?”

 

The car came to a stop at a vibrant red light.

 

Jihyo nodded and stared back into a pool of incessant nagging coated with silver hair and a fury that smelled of wine and pungent rotting jealousy.

 

Jeongyeon radiated an anger that didn’t belong to her, this anger was made of snarls and piercing eyes, claws that aimed for the throat and nothing else, this anger was akin to something primal. She was _terrified_ , but she was sure Jeongyeon was more afraid of the boiling emotion that stirred within her normally calm composure.

 

“I’ve never been good at that.” Jeongyeon raked her hands through her hair as she avoided looking back at Jihyo’s piercing stare. “Hiding the way I feel.”

 

“There’s worse things to be bad at,” Jihyo said as she sat straighter, “trust me.”

 

“Like?”

 

“You’re changing the subject.” Jihyo noted with a smile.

 

“I’m not.” Jeongyeon grumbled as she began to drive forwards.

 

Jihyo felt every muscle and tendon in her face yank her eyes forwards and prevent them from rolling into the back of her skull. “Just say it - What’s your problem with her?”

 

Jeongyeon loudly scoffed, “What’s there not to hate? She’s- She’s. Loud, and she’s way too friendly-”

 

“And she doesn’t even like soju-”

 

“Now you’re just pulling shit out of your ass,” Jihyo quickly interjected. “And you don’t hate her. You don’t hate people.”

 

The car fell into a familiar silence again, the blood that had escaped from her knuckles had flooded into Jeongyeon’s face, the bright crimson that filled her cheeks contrasted the stormy skies and the silver hair that fell over her dark eyes.

 

“So what if I don’t hate her,” Jeongyeon huffed after a few moments of silence, “what if I just don’t like her because I don’t like her.”

 

A streak of defiance thundered within her eyes. “She’s annoying anyways.”

 

“You’re jealous.” Jihyo smirked.

 

“What?!” Jeongyeon’s chest puffed and she stood straighter than ever before, her hair blew from her face to expose red eyes that stemmed from some coiled and tangled emotion that sat fermenting within her chest, not that it entirely mattered; she didn’t want to untangle it anyways.

 

“Jealous of being five feet of pure richness and cutesy shit? Of expensive wine and pricey apartments?”

 

“No,” she said through gritted teeth, “never jealous of that.”

 

A collection of harsh insults came to a halt within Jihyo’s throat, she blinked slowly as she watched Jeongyeon sink lower into a seat.

 

“You’re _enough_ you know?” Jihyo admitted after a few minutes of dreadful silence, “She doesn’t come anywhere close to _you_ \- You’re the only person we need.”

 

 _Lies_ she thought, but she let jaw loosen enough to give Jihyo a winded smile, careful enough to let the shadows of the car drape over her teary eyes.

 

* * *

 

 

“Where’s Jeongyeon?” Jihyo asked the next day as she entered an unfamiliar messy kitchen.

 

Dahyun shrugged as she poured cereal into her bowl, “She wasn’t here when I woke up.”

 

“And what time was that?”

 

A muffled gulp echoed from Dahyun’s sheepish smile, “I’ll tell you but you’re not allowed to get angry.”

 

Jihyo sighed before nodding, “Just tell me.”

 

Dahyun held out her pinkie finger with a smug grin, “Pinkie promise?”

 

Jihyo answered with a quick return of her pinkie finger.

 

“Five AM.”

 

“Five in the morning?!” Jihyo shrieked, “you have classes today!”

 

“You promised not to get pissed!”

 

Jihyo tightened her jaw before giving the younger girl a glare, “Jeongyeon never leaves before she absolutely has to.”

 

“I know,” Dahyun said in-between mouthfuls of cereal, “it’s super weird.”

 

She pulled her phone out and glanced at the last few texts Jeongyeon had sent.

 

_if i work overtime this week we can probably go out and watch that movie D &C want to watch_

 

_don’t forget that rent’s due this week_

 

_is D still sick? i can pick up some medicine on my way to work_

 

_im gonna be home late today, so go ahead without me_

 

Jihyo paused before typing:

 

_hey,,, where are you?_

 

_lmao somewhere, don’t worry i’ll be back soon enough_

 

She stared back at the surprisingly cold message and she typed back a simple:

 

_Okay, let me know if you need anything._

 

She never did texted back.

 

* * *

 

Sana sipped her coffee as she watched Jihyo’s hands fly erratically.

 

“She hasn’t been home in days, and then she sends me these bland ass responses,” Jihyo hissed as she banged her fist atop her textbook.

 

Sana chuckled, “You know Benito Mussolini used similar speech techniques when he took over Italy.”

 

Her eyes narrowed and her hands fell onto the table with a loud boom.

 

Sana gave her a sheepish smile as she pretended to smack her hands on the table and then proceeded to slam her hands on her chest.

 

“Fascism 101.”

 

“I’m not a fascist,” Jihyo huffed as she tucked her hands underneath the table, “I’m just a little pissed that she just disappeared, and then she doesn’t even bother to tell me where she went.”

 

“She’s a grown woman Jihyo,” Sana reminded her softly, “she can do whatever she wants.”

 

“Like being a total dick?”

 

“Like being a total dick,” Sana echoed with an exhausted sigh and a slight nod.

 

“That doesn’t seem fair.” Jihyo slightly pouted, her plump lips forming the bare signs of a frown.

 

“Nothing ever is.” Sana replied with her eyes staring into somewhere beyond the tiny library, somewhere beyond Seoul.

 

“Well damn.” Jihyo muttered into her cup.

 

* * *

 

Jihyo awoke to the sound of staggered steps and muffled curses, she blinked slowly before walking towards the doorway.

 

A familiar tall figure lumbered down the hall, her hand latched onto the wall while the other swatted the air.

 

“Jeongyeon?” Jihyo asked quietly as she walked slowly towards her.

 

“What’s up?” Jeongyeon gave her a wide smile and the entire hallway was plunged into the pungent scent of bitter alcohol.

 

“You’re drunk.” Jihyo declared as she sniffed the putrid air.

 

“Yeah?” Jeongyeon shot back, “And you’re short.”

 

“Who’d you drink with?” Jihyo asked, not bothering to insult her back.

 

“Nayeon.”

 

They waded through uncomfortable silence, but it still clung onto their bones when they finally ripped themselves free.

 

“Why do you care?” Jeongyeon hissed as she stumbled towards her room.

 

A tight grip encased her right arm and tugged her back towards Jihyo.

 

“You never get this drunk.” Jihyo’s voice was airy and yet tense, she seemed all too afraid and all too consumed by fury. She was drowning in complex contradictions that sped left and right and tangled into knots, but she knew one blaring, screaming truth:

 

_She hated seeing her like this._

 

Jeongyeon froze in her grip, she turned and towered over Jihyo, hot air stinking of soju puffed into her face. Jeongyeon slammed her free hand into the wall, narrowly missing Jihyo’s head, a loud thump broke free from her hand and shook the quiet apartment.

 

Her fist uncurled and flattened against the wall as a shaky breath staggered from her torn up lips that were colored with streaks of washed-out red that lit a flame deep within Jihyo’s belly, “You only care, because I’m drunk off of _cheap_ soju instead expensive fucking wine.”

 

An unruly shout began to unspiral within her throat, but her lips trembled and a pricking pain began to fill her eyes while tears clouded her vision; and all she could muster was a quiet and stifled, “I care because it’s _you_.”

 

She inhaled sharply and her hand fell to her side and swung limply, she leaned forward and Jihyo felt the slightest brush against her forehead, it was so gentle and tender Jihyo almost felt herself fall into the sweetness of it all, but her breath reeked of soju and the pungent scent of something rotting filled the hallway; and the reality of it all came sweeping in, she was _drunk_ , it was _three in the morning_ and she hadn’t seen her in _days_.

 

And before she knew it, her grip loosened and a door slamming shut rattled through her tender flesh and bones. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't updated in a while, sorry about that. 
> 
>  
> 
> Let me know what you guys think ;).

**Author's Note:**

> So Chaeyoung, Dahyun, Jihyo and Jeongyeon are roommates. The other Twice members will be making appearances throughout the future chapters. 
> 
> I'm lowkey excited to write this, since it's different from what I usually write. This has some humor and fluff which is completely different from Seulrene fic (lord help them). 
> 
> But let me know what guys think, I'm open to discussions ;).


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